Dragon Days, Victorian Spirits and a Farm Stand Oktoberfest, September 30 to October 4, 2026
The short version
Dragon Days Lake Geneva 2026 runs Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4, from 10 AM to 5 PM across downtown. It celebrates the city as the birthplace of Dungeons & Dragons. Tickets run $10 to $25, and kids 12 and under get in free.
Same weekend: a Friday night spiritualism program inside Black Point Estate, a scandal-themed walking tour downtown Saturday morning, and October Fest Weekend at Pearce’s Farm Stand in Walworth.
Today, September 30Last day for advance Dragon Days tickets, per the organizer. Buy now and you skip the ticket line at the gate Saturday.
This is the in-between week. The boat show and Apple Fest are done, and Oktoberfest and Columbus Day weekend haven’t hit yet.
So the lake gets quieter, and the weekend gets weird in a good way: wizards in Library Park, a cordial in a dark 1888 dining room, and bank-robbery stories on Wrigley Drive.
Week at a glance
Wed 30 to Thu 1
Quiet lake, farmers market
Thursday market at Horticultural Hall, 330 Broad Street, 8 AM to 1 PM. Squash, apples, cider.
Free
Fri 2
Spiritualism at Black Point
An after-dark evening in the 1888 Seipp mansion, 7 to 8:30 PM. Advance registration only.
$75, ages 13+
Sat 3 ★ Big day
Dragon Days + walking tour
Dragon Days 10 AM to 5 PM. Sordid and Scandalous tour at 11 AM. October Fest Weekend at Pearce’s.
Dragon Days $10 to $25
Sun 4
Dragon Days day 2
Same hours downtown, 10 AM to 5 PM. Pearce’s second day out in Walworth.
Kids 12 and under free
Dragon Days Fantasy Festival 2026, October 3 and 4
Gary Gygax lived here. He co-created Dungeons & Dragons here, and his company TSR ran out of Lake Geneva for years. Dragon Days is how the town owns that, and the Gygax Memorial Fund puts it on.
It’s part Renaissance faire, part game convention, spread across 7 downtown venues so you move between them all day:
- Library Park Opening ceremony, the Fantasy Village and the hay bale Dungeon Maze
- Geneva Lake Museum The Wizard of Lake Geneva exhibit on Gygax and D&D
- 330 Center Street The house where D&D was born, part of the historic site tours
- Lake Geneva Public Library Children’s fairytale story time (free)
- Geneva Theater, American Legion Hall, Horticultural Hall Gaming, intro games that teach first-timers to play, and the Enchanted Bazaar
There’s trick-or-treating in the Enchanted Bazaar and a Fantastic Costume Contest, so yes, people dress up. Capes, elf ears, full chain mail. You don’t have to, but you’ll stand out more in jeans than in a cloak.
The organizer hadn’t posted an hour-by-hour schedule when this went up. Check dragondays.org for the costume contest and tour times before you plan around them.
Haunted history at Black Point Estate, October 2 and 3
Spiritualism in the Victorian Era
Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp built Black Point in 1888, and the Wisconsin Historical Society runs it now. On these nights you’re in the dining room after dark, with a cordial, hearing about the Fox sisters and the séance craze that swept the country in the late 1800s.
There’s a local thread too. The Morris Pratt Institute in Whitewater, in the county’s northwest corner, was the country’s first spiritualist school.
Sordid and Scandalous: A Walking Tour of Lake Geneva
Black Point’s historians walk you 1.5 miles through downtown and the Maple Park historic district. Topics include a 1950s bank robbery, Prohibition-era gangsters, the Geneva Lake sea serpent legend and, apparently, flying saucers.
It runs rain or shine. Wear real shoes. Restrooms and an ATM are at the Riviera before you start.
October Fest Weekend at Pearce’s Farm Stand, October 3 and 4
Pearce’s kicks off October with a weekend of free live music and the full fall setup running. Next weekend is Pumpkin Fest, which is busier. This one’s the warm-up, and the patch has its best pick of pumpkins before the crowds.
- Corn maze, lookout tower and the human hamster wheel
- Jumping bales with slides and a real John Deere combine to climb
- Pre-picked produce, pumpkins and a huge spread of gourds
- Cider donuts and kettle corn made on site on weekends
The farm’s own site hadn’t posted the music lineup yet, so check their Facebook page before you go. More farms on the same loop are in the apple orchards and pumpkin patches guide.
One Saturday, 3 stops: history, dragons, pumpkins
This is the order that works. The walking tour is the only thing with a fixed start, so everything else bends around it.
- Downtown history
- Dragon Days
- Farm and evening
- Dragon Days opens, Library Park
The opening ceremony is free. Pick up your pass here if you bought ahead.
- Head to the Riviera
About half a mile east to 812 Wrigley Drive. Check in for the walking tour.
- Sordid and Scandalous tour
90 minutes and 1.5 miles through downtown and Maple Park.
- Lunch downtown
Broad Street and Wrigley Drive, before Dragon Days crowds take the tables.
- Dragon Days, round 2
Geneva Lake Museum exhibit, a D&D intro game, the Dungeon Maze.
- Drive west to Pearce’s
About 15 minutes. You still get 2 hours of farm before close.
- Corn maze, pumpkins, cider donuts
Load the car and head back for dinner. The farm closes at 5:30.
How to play the weekend
Go anyway. Dragon Days runs intro games built for first-timers, and the museum exhibit explains why any of this matters.
Friday night at Black Point and Saturday’s 11 AM walking tour. Both are adult-focused and both need advance tickets.
Dragon Days is free for them. Add Pearce’s bales and maze. Skip Black Point and the walking tour, which are 13+.
Midweek. Walk the Shore Path Wednesday or Thursday, when the color is just starting.
Most Dragon Days venues are indoors, and the walking tour runs rain or shine. The rainy day list covers the rest.
Save it for next weekend. Oktoberfest, Pumpkin Fest and the costume train all land October 9 to 11.
Parking for Dragon Days
There’s no festival shuttle this weekend, so you’re on city parking. Downtown meters run $4 an hour Friday through Sunday, payable at the kiosks or through the ParkMobile app. Overnight parking isn’t allowed between 2 and 6 AM.
Library Park sits at the west end of downtown on Main Street, and the venues spread east from there toward Broad Street. Park once, early, and move between venues on foot.
Day by day: September 30 to October 4, 2026
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Wednesday, September 30
Advance Dragon Days tickets close today. Otherwise quiet. A good night for an early dinner on the lake with open tables.
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Thursday, October 1
Lake Geneva Farmers Market at Horticultural Hall, 330 Broad Street, 8 AM to 1 PM. The rest of the season is in the farmers markets guide.
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Friday, October 2
Spiritualism in the Victorian Era at Black Point Estate, 7 to 8:30 PM. Check-in at Reek School.
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Saturday, October 3
Dragon Days 10 AM to 5 PM across downtown. Sordid and Scandalous walking tour at 11 AM from the Riviera. October Fest Weekend at Pearce’s in Walworth.
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Sunday, October 4
Dragon Days day 2, 10 AM to 5 PM. Pearce’s second day. Or take the long way home on the Lake Geneva scenic drive.
Fall color the first week of October
Early. You’ll see sumac and a few red maples turning along the Shore Path and the back roads, with a lot of green still behind them. Peak around Geneva Lake usually lands in the middle 2 weeks of October.
The Travel Wisconsin Fall Color Report tracks Walworth County through the season. The full season rundown is in the fall activities guide.
Coming up next
- Lake Geneva Oktoberfest, October 10 and 11 at Flat Iron Park, free, with a new Beer Crawl Friday the 9th. Full schedule in next week’s post.
- Pumpkin Fest at Pearce’s, October 10 and 11
- East Troy Trick-or-Treat Trains, Fridays October 9, 16, 23 and 30
- Poe at the Point, October 15, 16 and 17 at Black Point Estate, Edgar Allan Poe stories after a sunset sail
- International Observe the Moon Night, Saturday October 17, 7 to 9 PM at Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay. Reservations required, and these sell out.
- Elkhorn Oktoberfest, Saturday October 17 on the square in downtown Elkhorn
Our running list is the Lake Geneva events calendar, updated Wednesdays. Past weeks live under What’s Happening at The Lake.
Why a week like this turns weekenders into homeowners
A town that throws a festival for a board game invented in a basement on Center Street has a long memory. So does a mansion that stayed with one family for 4 generations before it opened to the public. That history is part of what you’re buying into here.
Early October is also an easy time to look at property. Showings book faster than in July, and you see a place with the lake quiet and the leaves starting to turn. Kim and Joel Reyenga of eXp Realty work the whole area year-round, from Lake Geneva to Walworth, Fontana and Elkhorn.
Kim and Joel Reyenga, eXp Realty. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Frequently asked questions
When is Dragon Days in Lake Geneva in 2026?
Dragon Days Fantasy Festival runs Saturday October 3 and Sunday October 4, 2026, from 10 AM to 5 PM both days, at venues across downtown Lake Geneva including Library Park, the Geneva Lake Museum and the Lake Geneva Public Library.
How much are Dragon Days tickets?
Dragon Days tickets run $10 to $25 for a 1-day or weekend pass. Kids 12 and under get in free, and the opening ceremony and library events are free for everyone. Advance tickets are sold through September 30.
Why is Lake Geneva called the birthplace of Dungeons & Dragons?
Gary Gygax, who co-created Dungeons & Dragons, lived in Lake Geneva, and his company TSR was based there. The game’s early development happened at his home at 330 Center Street, which is part of the Dragon Days historic site tours.
What is Spiritualism in the Victorian Era at Black Point Estate?
It’s an evening program inside the 1888 Black Point Estate mansion on Geneva Lake’s south shore, covering the Victorian spiritualist movement with a cordial. It runs 7 to 8:30 PM on October 2, 9 and 23, 2026, costs $75, and is for ages 13 and up with advance registration.
Where do you park for Black Point Estate evening events?
Park at Reek School, W4094 South Lake Shore Drive, Lake Geneva. Staff check guests in at the school lot and bring them to the estate. The evening programs don’t include a lake cruise.
What is the Sordid and Scandalous walking tour in Lake Geneva?
It’s a 90-minute, 1.5-mile guided walk through downtown Lake Geneva and the Maple Park neighborhood run by Black Point Estate historians. It covers local crime, Prohibition-era stories and legends. Saturdays October 3, 10 and 17, 2026 at 11 AM from the Riviera, 812 Wrigley Drive. $25, ages 13 and up.
Is Pearce’s Farm Stand open the first weekend of October?
Yes. Pearce’s Farm Stand in Walworth holds October Fest Weekend on October 3 and 4, 2026, and is open daily 9 AM to 5:30 PM through October 31. Pumpkin Fest follows on October 10 and 11.
See you at the lake.
